Allardia in Flora of Pakistan @ efloras.org

18. Allardia Decne., Voy. Ind. Bot. 4: 87. 1844; Hook. f., Fl. Brit. Ind. 3: 313. 1881; K. Bremer & Humphries in Bull. Nat. Hist. Mus. Lond. (Bot.) 23 (2): 98. 1993; K. Bremer, Asteraceae: 452. 1998.

Waldheimia Kar. & Kir. in Bull. Soc. Nat. Mosc. 15: 125. 1842; Podlech in Rech. f., Fl. Iran. Comp. IV. 158: 155. 1986.

Perennial, glabrous to densely hairy low growing herbs, with 1-2- pinnatifid, densely borne, alternate to rosetted, petiolate to sessile leaves. Capitula heterogamous, radiate, on solitary peduncles. Involucre broadly napiform, phyllaries with dark brown margins. Receptacle convex, glabrous. Ray-florets female, fertile or sterile or neuter, with white, pink or bluish-purple ligules. Disc-florets bisexual, yellow or with apical part of corolla tube 5-toothed and bluish-violet. Cypselas prismatic, pentangular, faintly 5-ribbed, glabrous or with sessile glands, rarely pilose. Disc achene pappus of several, subulate, basally ± united apically brownish scales as long as or longer than the corolla, ray achene pappus similar but much reduced.

A small genus of c. 8 species, distributed in Afghanistan, Central Asia, Pakistan, China (Sinkiang and Tibet) and Himalayas (Nepal?, India). Represented in Pakistan by 6 species.

Allardia is quite similar to Central Asian genus Cancrinia in habit and cypsela morphology, but the former has more and narrower pappus scales.

1 Leaves oblong, pinnatisect or pinnatipartite. Cypselas sparsely pilose or subglabrous. (2)

+ Leaves spathulate or obtriangular-cuneate, palmately 3-5-lobed at the apices. Cypselas glabrous. (3)

2 (1) All plant parts totally glabrous, except c. 1.5 mm long, glabrescent cypselas. 1 Allardia stoliczkae

+ All plant parts densely to laxly whitish tomentose, including c. 3 mm long cypelas. 2 Allardia tomentosa

3 (1) Plants totally glabrous or tomentose below the involucre and on peduncles. Cypselas more than 2.5 mm long. (4)

+ Plants densely lanate with grayish-white, thick hairs. Cypselas less than 2 mm long. (5)

4 (3) Capitula 1.5 – 2.5 cm across, on sparsely hairy short peduncles. Phyllaries 3.5 – 4.5 mm long, hairy at the bases. Cypselas 2.5 – 3 mm long. 3 Allardia glabra

+ Capitula 2.5 – 3.5 cm across, on glabrous peduncles. Phyllaries 6 – 7 mm long, glabrous all over. Cypselas 3 – 3.5 mm long. 4 Allardia tridactylites

5 (3) Leaves 5 – 8 mm long. Capitula 1.5 – 2 cm across. Cypselas c. 1.5 mm long. 5 Allardia nivea

+ Leaves 10 – 15 mm long,. Capitual 3.5 – 4 cm across. Cypselas 1.5 – 1.75 mm long. 6 Allardia vestita

Lower Taxa